– Tremor strongest in 25 years
– At least 9 killed, 50 missing, Over 900 hurt
– No report of Filipino casualties
– Tsunami warnings raised for southern Japan, Philippines
HUALIEN, Taiwan – Taiwan’s biggest earthquake in at least 25 years killed nine people on Wednesday, injuring more than 900, while 50 hotel workers were missing en route to a national park, authorities said, as rescuers used ladders to bring others to safety.
Television broadcast images of buildings tilted at precarious angles in the mountainous, sparsely populated eastern county of Hualien, near the epicenter of the 7.2 magnitude quake, which struck just offshore at about 8 a. m. (0000GMT).
The quake hit at a depth of 15.5 km (9.6 miles), just as people were headed for work and school, setting off a tsunami warning for southern Japan and the Philippines that was later lifted.
The official central news agency said the quake was the biggest since one of magnitude 7.6 in 1999 that killed about 2,400 people and damaged or destroyed 50,000 buildings.
Taiwan weather officials ranked Wednesday’s quake in Hualien as “Upper 6,” or the second-highest level of intensity on a scale ranging from 1 to 7.
Such quakes collapse walls unless they are made of reinforced concrete blocks, while people cannot stand upright and must crawl in order to move, experts say.
In Manila, President Marcos Jr. assured Filipinos living and working in Taiwan the Philippine government is ready to assist them.
He said the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) is ensuring the safety of the 159,480 Filipino workers in Taiwan.
“We stand ready to assist and support our fellow Filipinos in Taiwan in any way possible during this difficult period,” he Marcos.
He also said the Philippines is with the people of Taiwan as they endure the aftermath of the earthquake.
The DMW said it has yet to receive any reports of Filipino workers hurt or killed.
“Thus far, the report there is that there are no reported injuries or fatalities among OFWs. We are praying very hard that it stays that way,” said DMW Undersecretary and officer-in-charge Hans Leo Cacdac.
However, he said, they are not ruling out the probability that Filipinos could be among casualties.
“We immediately activated protocols with Filipino communities, leaders, relevant Taiwan government agencies as well as employers and trade associations to ascertain the safety and status of Taiwan-based OFWs,” said Cacdac.
The DMW said it has opened a 24/7 help desk for the Filipino workers in Taiwan and their families.
In the Philippines, the hotline numbers are: 8522-3663 / 8376-6352 / 8426-0833 / 8293-9155 / 8252-1972; mobile number: +63 919 067 3975; and email: repat@dmw.gov.ph.
In Taiwan, the hotline numbers are +886 932-218-057 in Taipei; +886 988-976-596 in Kaoshiung; and +886 966-537-732 in Taichung.
The Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) in Taiwan said there was no report of Filipino casualties.
“Based on our monitoring in Taipei and the reports from our field offices in Taichung and Kaohsiung, and the reports coming from our Filipino communities in Taiwan, there are no Filipino casualties in the aftermath of the earthquake and the aftershocks,” MECO chairman Silvestre Bello III said in a statement.
Bello said MECO reached out to leaders of the Filipino communities in Taiwan immediately after the earthquake.
RESCUE
Video showed rescuers using ladders to help trapped people out of windows, while elsewhere there were massive landslides, as strong tremors in Taipei forced the subway system to close briefly, although most lines resumed service.
“It was very strong. It felt as if the house was going to topple,” said Chang Yu-lin, 60, a worker in a hospital in Taipei, the capital.
A woman who runs bed-and-breakfast accommodation in Hualien city said she scrambled to calm her guests who were frightened by the quake.
“This is the biggest earthquake I have ever experienced,” said the woman, who asked to be identified only by her family name, Chan.
Fire authorities said they had already evacuated some 70 people trapped in tunnels near Hualien city, including two Germans.
But they had lost contact with 50 workers aboard four minibuses heading to a hotel in a national park, Taroko Gorge, they said, and rescuers were looking for them. Another 80 people are trapped in a mining area, though it was not immediately clear if they were inside a mine.
The government put the number of injured at 946.
“At present the most important thing, the top priority, is to rescue people,” said President-elect Lai Ching-te, speaking outside one of the collapsed buildings in Hualien.
The rail link to the area was expected to re-open on Thursday, Lai, who is set to take office next month, told reporters.
JETS DAMAGED
Taiwan’s air force said six F-16 fighter jets had been slightly damaged at a major base in the city from which jets are often scrambled to see off incursions by China’s air force, but the aircraft are expected to return to service very soon.
In Japan, the weather agency put the quake’s magnitude at 7.7, saying several small tsunami waves reached parts of the southern prefecture of Okinawa, while downgrading its tsunami warning to an advisory.
In the Philippines, seismology officials warned coastal residents in several provinces to move to higher ground.
Chinese state media said the quake was felt in the southeastern province of Fujian, while a Reuters witness said it was also felt in the commercial hub of Shanghai.
Aftershocks could still be felt in Taipei, with more than 50 recorded, weather officials said.
Most power has been restored after the quake, electricity utility Taipower said, with the island’s two nuclear power stations unaffected.
Taiwan’s high-speed rail operator said no damage or injuries were reported on its trains, although services would be delayed as it made inspections.
A major supplier of chips to Apple and Nvidia, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co, said it had evacuated some fabrication plants and safety systems were operating normally.
“To ensure the safety of personnel, some fabs were evacuated according to company procedure,” the semiconductor giant said in a statement, adding later that the employees had begun to return to work.
EVACUATION
In the Philippines, residents from coastal areas in Ilocos Norte, Isabela and Cagayan provinces were evacuated following the issuance of a tsunami warning by the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs).
Phivolcs issued the tsunami warming at 08:17 a.m. minutes after the Taiwan quake.
At 10:33 a.m., Phivolcs cancelled the tsunami alert.
“Based on available data of our sea level monitoring stations facing the epicentral area, no significant sea level disturbances have been recorded since 7:58 a.m. up until this cancellation,” Phivolcs said.
After the Phivolcs tsunami warning, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said the Cagayan Valley Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council issued a memorandum directing local DRRMC chairpersons “to conduct immediate evacuation to coastal areas to the higher ground or move farther inland.”
The NDRRMC also said it also received a report from the Office of Civil Defense Ilocos region “that there was an ongoing preemptive evacuation from areas in Pagudpod and Currimao towns in Ilocos Norte.
Apart from the two Ilocos Norte towns, the NDRRMC said there were also preemptive evacuations in Divilacan and Palanan towns in Isabela; and Abulug, Santa Ana and Buguey towns in Cagayan.
However, the NDRRMC could not immediately say how many people were evacuated, adding it was still waiting for the final list from these areas.
Phivolcs administrator Teresito Bacolcol, at a briefing, said the cancellation of the tsunami warning means the evacuees may return to their residence.
Senators expressed sympathies/
Senate minority leader Aquilino Pimentel III said the Filipino people stand “in solidarity” with the people of Taiwan during this trying time and offer unwavering support “as you work to rebuild and recover.”
Sen. Grace Poe extended “our deepest sympathies to the people of Taiwan” which were affected by the disaster.
“Our support also goes for the many individuals providing emergency assistance and rescue efforts on the ground,” Poe said.
An official of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines called for prayers for the victims.
“We have asked our Filipino chaplains to offer Holy Masses for safety, sound health, and our almighty God in His mercy and power may bring comfort and healing to those afflicted,” said Bishop Ruperto Santos, vice chairman of the CBCP’s Episcopal Commission for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People. — Reuters, Jocelyn Montemayor, Gerard Naval, Ashzel Hachero, Victor Reyes, and Raymond Africa
